Maiasaura
MY-ah-SORE-ah /ˌmaɪəˈsɔːrə/
Accepted genus
good mother lizard
- maia · Greek · good mother
- saura · Greek · lizard (feminine form of 'sauros')
The name means "good mother lizard". It was chosen because Maiasaura nesting sites were found with eggs, hatchlings and juveniles, suggesting that adults cared for their young in the nest. The feminine ending "-saura" is used instead of "-saurus" to match "maia".
- Named by
- Horner and Makela
- Year named
- 1979
- Period
- Late Cretaceous
- Stage
- Campanian
- Found in
- Two Medicine Formation, Montana, USA
A hadrosaurid ("duck-billed dinosaur"). The type species is Maiasaura peeblesorum. It is known from nesting sites and bonebeds, including the "Egg Mountain" locality.